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50/50 Split liability claims – How much compensation can i claim?

Most people assume that in order to be able to claim compensation for an accident, that the cause of the accident was someone else’s fault. Many people who suffer an injury

Split liability accident

after an accident in which they were partly to blame assume that they cannot pursue a claim for compensation as the fault at least partly lies at their door. However, this is not necessarily the case.

Although it is true that if an accident was entirely your fault you won’t be able to claim compensation, in split liability claims you may still be entitled to compensation for your injury. in accidents where fault may lie with two or more parties, it is often possible for each party to be able to claim an amount of monetary compensation for any personal injuries sustained.

When it comes to split liability claims, cases are often complex and intricate. Unless there is a split liability agreement between the parties involved, your case may go to court so that a judge can decide who is the responsible parties are. for example, in a road collision at a roundabout, there is often more than one responsible party who caused the crash. In cases such as this a judge can decide where the blame lies so that one or more of the parties involved can clam compensation for any injuries.

Due to the complex nature of how a 50 50 claim works, it is always advisable to seek free legal advicef rom a professional solicitor. The team and Accident Claims UK can put you in touch with a specialised 50 50 split liability solicitor who will be able to advise whether you may have a claim for compensation and who can also deal with your claim on your behalf while you focus on your recovery. Call us today on 0800 073 8801 to start the process today.

A guide to split liability claims

In the case of split liability claims, it is not always clear cut about where the fault lies for an accident. In personal injury compensation claims where there is clear liability, whether or not you are entitled to compensation for your injury is usually pretty straight forward. However, when you have caused an accident or have been involved in a 50 50 at fault accident, whether or not you will be entitled to compensation is much more complicated.

This guide aims to give you information and advice about 50 50 split liability compensation cases or cases where more than two parties are involved so that you can begin to get an idea of whether or not you may be entitled to compensation after an accident that may partly have been your fault. This guide will also explain how a 50 50 claim works and what are the most common types of split liability claims.

We will attempt to answer the age-old question; “I was involved in a car accident that was my fault can I claim personal injury compensation?” and also give you a rough idea of the amounts you may be able to claim for with our compensation calculator. The guide will also give you information about what damages you can include in split liability claims.

If you are considering beginning a claim for personal injury compensation after an accident that was partly your fault then it is always advisable to seek legal advice first but this guide will give you a good start on knowing in a 50 50 insurance claim who pays for what.

What is fault in an accident?

When the term “fault” is used in regard to accidents and compensation claims, the term refers to whoever was responsible for the accident. It is most commonly used when talking about road traffic collisions where the driver may be at fault or partially responsible for the accident and therefore any damages or injuries which were incurred as a result of the accident.

What are fault accidents?

Fault accidents are traffic accidents where the driver of the vehicle involved is at fault for the accident occurring. Personal injury solicitors are most commonly known for representing clients of non-fault accidents where their injuries were the result of someone else. However, not all cases are so clear-cut and although you may be thinking “the car accident was my fault, can I claim personal injury?”, you may still be able to claim compensation after an accident if you were only partly at fault.

If you have fully comprehensive car insurance and you have been in a fault accident then your insurance will cover the cost of damages to your car and the damages to the other car. If either driver or passengers in either car have sustained an injury then your insurance may also cover this if you are fully comprehensive.

What are partly at fault accidents?

Vehicle collisions can be straight forward and aligning blame can be easy, but often finding out who is responsible is not always easy. In cases where two or more drivers share the responsibility of causing an accident, these cases are referred to as partly at fault accidents.

In cases where two cars have been involved in a collision and both drivers have a share of the blame, it is referred to as 50 50 split liability. In cases such as these, both drivers may be able to claim compensation for any personal injury they have sustained. If the drivers cannot come to a split liability agreement then a judge may be required to assign proportion of blame to either driver. These cases are never straight forward but that does not mean you won’t be entitled to monetary compensation.

Can I claim if I was partly to blame for my accident?

If you were solely to blame for a road traffic collision then it is highly unlikely that you could claim for personal injury compensation. However, any passenger who were in your car at the time could claim for compensation if they sustained an injury as they will be considered not at fault even if they are in the fault vehicle.

In split liability claims, were more than one driver are held responsible for the accident, then it is likely that you would be able to claim for your own personal injury compensation. If you have a split liability agreement, or a judge has ordered that you were not solely to blame for the accident, you may have a claim for compensation as you will be sharing liability. A trained solicitor will be able to give you more specific advice relating to your individual circumstances.

What happens when both drivers are partly to blame, also known as split liability?

If two parties are to blame for a road traffic collision then they share the blame and the liability for the accident50/50. As each party takes equal blame for the accident, both are entitled to claim compensation for any damages and personal injury they may have suffered.

How a 50/50 claim works is that when any damages are awarded to either party, you will only receive 50% of the amount awarded as you will be liable for the other 50%.

What can I claim for in split liability claims?

When you are looking to claim monetary compensation for a personal injury, whether that injury was sustained in a car accident that was partly your fault or it was sustained in an accident at work, there are two types of damages which can be included in your claim; general damages and special damages.

General damages refer to the pain and suffering you have endured as a direct result of your injury. While all claims are different, they usually include;

Physical pain-how much physical pain the injury has caused you and continues to cause you.

Psychological pain- you can also include damages for psychological trauma you have experienced as a result of your injury.

Physical impairment- if your injury has left you with a physical impairment, whether permanent or temporary, you can include it in your compensation claim.

Physical disfigurement- if you have been left disfigured by your injury then this can also be added to your claim.

Special damages are claimed during a personal injury case in order to ensure that the claimant isn’t left with any financial difficulties as a result of their injury. They can include;

Loss of earnings

Loss of potential earnings or employment

Medical expenses including specialist equipment and home adaptations

Potential cost of future medical care and expenses

Prescription charges

Damage to and replacement of property

Personal injury law in the UK is designed to ensure that anyone who suffers an injury through no fault of their own can claim monetary compensation for that injury. If your claim for compensation is part of a split liability agreement then while you may include any of the above damages as part of your claim, you will only receive 50% of the total damages awarded as you have accepted fault for the other 50%. A judge will take into account all of your claim for damages and award according to your individual circumstances and then you will receive half of that amount as that is how a 50 50 claim works.

The most common types of split liability and fault accidents

Accidents on the road can happen at any time and have a wide variety of causes. Often, accidents happen so quickly that it can be difficult to know exactly who is to blame and determining where the fault lies is not easy.

There are many occasions on the road where accidents can be the fault of two or more drivers. While this list isn’t comprehensive of all 50 50 at fault accidents, these are some of the most common examples of split liability claims for car accidents;

Rear end collisions- rear end collisions are one of the most common types of accidents on the road. While a bump from behind may not seem that serious, they can cause whiplash injury which can be very painful for a long time. While rear end collisions are often the faultof one driver, if your car is hit from behind and then is jarred into the car in front, you and the other drivers would likely end up making split liability claims.

Driver making a right-hand turn- making a right hand turn across traffic can easily cause an accident. If you have made the turn in front of a car who was speeding then you both can make split liability claims as you would both be at fault for any collision.

Right of way confusion- where more than one side road joins a main road, there can often be confusion about who has the right of way. Cars joining from opposing side roads at the same time can end up colliding if they do not know who has the right of way.

There are other 50 50 split liability accidents that can occur but these examples should give you an idea of whether or not your own accident could be considered a split liability agreement.

Establishing fault and liability in an accident

For some road traffic accidents, it is obvious who is at fault and that makes any claim for personal injury or insurance claims relatively straight forward. However, when each driver considers the other party to be at fault then things can become more complex, especially if there is fault on behalf of both drivers. Some accidents may even have more than two parties who are liable for causing the collision.

If there is a dispute 50/50 insurance claim then the insurance companies of the drivers involved will often perform an investigation to find who was at fault and therefore liable for any damages. If the insurance companies cannot decide, or the drivers refuse to accept responsibility rather than coming to a split liability agreement amicably, then the case may proceed to court and a judge will make the final decision about who is liable.

If you are unsure whether you have been involved in a 50 50 at fault accident then you should seek legal advice from a solicitor who specialises in split liability claims. If the other driver does not want to come to a split liability agreement, it will be beneficial to you to have legal representation and advice to guide you through the process should your claim end up in court.

Can I make a claim against my own insurance?

Whether or not you can make a claim against your own insurance depends greatly on your individual circumstances surrounding your accident. If you are not at fault for the collision then you will claim any damages, including personal injury claims, against the driver at fault’s insurance company.

However, if you are the driver at fault, then your insurance company will have to cover all damages and personal injury claims from the other party. If you have fully comprehensive car insurance and you were at fault then your insurance company will also pay out for your damages but you will not be able to claim for any personal injury compensation.

In the case of split liability claims, it can be hard to know in a 50 50 insurance claim who pays for what. Your insurance company will pay for the opposing party’s damages and vice versa. So any personal injury claims made as part of a split liability agreement will be recouped from the other party’s insurance company.

Who can I claim from if a car accident was my fault?

If you have been in a car accident and it was your fault then you won’t be able to claim any kind of personal injury compensation. However, if you have fully comprehensive car insurance then you can claim for the damages to your vehicle against your own car insurance. If you only have third party car insurance then you will be left paying the damage yourself.

Can I still claim for whiplash if I caused the accident?

If you have been involved in an accident that was entirely your fault then, unfortunately, you will not be able to make any kind of claim for personal injury compensation, as previously mentioned. However, how a 50 50 claim works is that if you are sharing liability with another driver then you can claim for any damages, including whiplash, and you will receive 50% of the compensation amount you would have otherwise received if the other driver had been solely at fault for the accident.

Can I claim for personal injury if I caused the accident?

In split liability claims, if you are sharing responsibility for the cause of any accident then you are still entitled to make a claim for personal injury compensation. If your claim is successful, as part of a split liability agreement, you will only receive half of the amount of damages awarded as you are accepting 50% fault for causing the accident, and therefore your injury, in the first place. If you are solely responsible for the accident then you will not be entitled to make any kind of personal injury claim.

How to start your fault or liability accident claim

If you have been involved in a road traffic accident then it is important that you seek legal advice as quickly as possible to determine how best to proceed. You should also contact your insurance company, especially if you believe you may be needing a split liability claim as you believe you may share some of the fault for the accident. In some cases, your insurance company and the other driver’s insurance company will be able to deal with the 50/50 accident no claims between themselves.

However, if neither driver accepts any responsibility, then your case may need to be heard in court if the insurance company’s investigation doesn’t resolve the dispute 50/50 insurance claim. In this case, you should seek legal advice and guidance to help deal with your case.

If you have sustained an injury in the accident that you are going to claim compensation for as part of your split liability claim, you will also need to get a medical examination from a doctor which will show all the effects of the injury as well as the potential repercussions in the future.

For help starting split liability claims, call Accident Claims UK today on 0800 073 8801 and speak to one of our advisors who can put you in touch with a split liability agreement specialist.

Compensation claim calculator for accidents with 50/50 blame or liability

It is important to remember that all claims for compensation are different and any amounts of compensation awarded for split liability claims are worked out on an individual basis and depend on several variants such as severity of injury and amount of blame held by the claimant.

Type of injury

Minimum amount

Maximum amount

Ankle injury

£10,000

£53,000

Arm injury

£4,500

£228,000

Back injury

£350

£124,000

Ear injury

£4,300

£35,000

Elbow injury

£3,100

£43,000

Eye injury

£1,600

£205,000

Face injury

£1,700

£73,000

Finger injury

£350

£70,000

Foot injury

£5,000

£153,000

Hand injury

£700

£151,000

Head injury

£1,500

£310,000

Knee injury

£4,750

£73,000

Leg injury

£1,800

£215,000

Neck injury

£1,800

£113,000

Shoulder injury

£350

£37,000

Toe injury

£4,500

£44,000

Wrist injury

£2,500

£45,000

This table outlines the minimum and maximum amounts that could potentially be awarded for split liability agreements:

No win no fee partial fault or split liability accident claims

At Accident Claims UK, we offer our expert legal help on a no win no fee basis for personal injury cases and that includes split liability claims. As we work on a no win no fee basis, there is no financial risk to yourself at all. If you claim is not successful then you do not need to pay a penny. If your claim is successful then we take out fees from the amount you are awarded so you do not need to worry about finding extra money for legal fees. This allows you to focus on your recovery without the need to worry about potentially large legal costs.

The dedicated team at Accident Claims UK will put you in touch with a specialised split liability claims solicitor who will work closely with you to understand the complexities of your case in order to get the best outcome possible. We will arrange a thorough medical examination so that the extent of any injuries is fully understood and so we can get the most damages for you as possible to help you recover with as little stress as possible.

Contact us

If you need to start a split liability agreement and unsure where to start then call us today on 0800 073 8801 or email us at office@accidentclaims.co.uk. Alternatively, fill out our contact form with some details of your claim and one of our dedicated team will get in touch with you with more information and advice.